Rasner set for another close-up

DETROIT --The last time Darrell Rasner pitched on a Fox game of the week, it didn't go very well.

He lasted just nine pitches that day, last May 19, because the Mets' Endy Chavez hit a one-hopper that broke Rasner's index finger.

On his pitching hand.

The right-hander missed the rest of the Yankees' season and over the winter was taken off the team's 40-man roster. But he has earned himself another shot, and today (on Fox) he gets his second start since being called up to replace Ian Kennedy in the rotation.

The Yankees declined to tender Rasner a contract last December, making him a free agent. But they immediately offered him a minor-league deal with a non-roster invite to spring training, and he accepted that night.

Rasner could have looked into signing elsewhere. But he figured the Yankees knew him since they had claimed him off waivers from the Washington Nationals in February 2006. And they told him he had a shot to be the team's long reliever.

"It did (bother him to be non-tendered)," Rasner said. "But what are you going to do? These guys were straight up with me, so I respected that. And I wanted to act professional about it."

But Rasner had a 5.02 ERA in spring training, and the Yankees decided to go without a long man.

"He just was off," pitching coach Dave Eiland said.

Mostly, Rasner was rusty. Without overpowering stuff, he is what baseball people call a "touch-and-feel" pitcher. And going so long without pitching last summer hurt that feel.

So Rasner went to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre determined to get it back. And in five starts there, he went 4-0 with a 0.87 ERA. In 31 innings, he struck out 27 and walked just six.

"I went in with a positive attitude," Rasner said. "My whole goal was to get some innings in."

Scranton pitching coach Rafael Chavez helped with what Rasner called "a couple of mechanical tweaks" -- getting him to keep his head directly over his back foot, which helped him command his fastball to both sides of the plate and avoid the pitch that tails back into the middle.

"Everything stays a little more true," he said.

Rasner also worked on a cut fastball he had toyed with the past couple of years to go with his fastball, curve and changeup.

"(I'm) throwing that cutter all counts, both sides of the plate," Rasner said. "(Chavez) kind of refined it for me."

Against Seattle on Sunday, Rasner allowed two runs in six innings and did not issue a walk. He gave up a two-run homer to Adrian Beltre in the first inning before retiring 16 of the final 19 batters he faced.